The 125th anniversary Petersfield Musical Festival kicked off with a superb and varied programme by the St Cat’s Wind Ensemble.

Comprising players from around Winchester and directed by the charismatic Adam Broughton, St Cat’s presented a whirlwind tour of the distinctive sound world created by this special group of instruments which has its roots in military bands.

Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue is one of the most iconic pieces of music in the repertoire, completed in five weeks in 1924, and St Cat’s version was the original. It is piano concerto, jazz/blues showcase and Big Band blockbuster in one.

Soloist Keelan Carew, a formidable pianist and musical outreach pioneer, was outstanding. Relaxed, bursting with energy and confident, he displayed a jazz musician’s improvisatory virtuosity and a concert pianist’s technical mastery, exuding style and panache during solos and passagework.

Full praise for the first clarinet, who delivered the opening wailing slide with bravura. All sections gave it full intensity and power.

The soprano saxophone, first trumpet and glockenspiel deserve a special mention. The ensemble was excellent throughout and rubato was judiciously used. Band and soloist richly deserved their ovation.

Gershwin premiered it in 1924 in front of Rachmaninov and Stravinsky. The 1922 Festival piano proved a fitting instrument with its colours and tone. Many danced along in their seats to the unforgettable tunes.

There was an intriguing tone poem by Japanese composer Satoshi Yagisawa, Hymn to the Infinite Sky. Starting with a slow, hymn-like and colouristic introduction deploying scalic melodies and a timbre highlighting piccolo flute, E flat clarinet and a radiant brass backdrop, it built to an emotional climax reflecting the passion of the composer pleading for a better world.

St Cat’s played The Bicycle Shoppe by New York’s Lisa DeSpain, known for Broadway musical arrangements and concert works. It was commissioned by the US Air Force to commemorate the centenary of the Wright brothers’ first flight.

The Wright brothers began as bicycle manufacturers, and this musical interlude featured quirky rhythms and playful melodies, incorporating an anvil and car horn as special effects. The audience thoroughly enjoyed this delightful and whimsical musical lollipop.

Next was American-Polish composer David Maslanka’s Traveler, which started in a strident mood depicting the energy of youth, cleverly mixing piano into the musical texture.

In a style reminiscent of minimalism, which uses small groups of repeated notes to hypnotic effect, the piece carries the listener through a metaphorical journey of life to the slower pace of old age.

An extended percussion section, including tubular bells, created an atmospheric sound world, with repeated timpani notes a steady heartbeat.

St Cat’s finished with Lord of the Rings by Dutch composer Johan de Meij. Inspired by the book, this five-part symphony explores characters using almost cinematic music. From Gandalf to hobbits, each was portrayed vividly in an edgy, modern musical idiom, making full use of the extended percussion section.

The cor anglais player and timpani were stand-out, but all players showed great accomplishment in mastering this melodically, harmonically and rhythmically complex work.

Altogether an enthralling evening.

Sarah Hard